Pelini: Interim role is tough

Garry Smits

Tuesday

Dec 30, 2008 at 12:01 AM

Nebraska coach Bo Pelini said Clemson did Dabo Swinney, his counterpart in the Konica Minolta Gator Bowl Thursday, a favor earlier this month when they removed the word "interim" from his coaching title.Pelini knows that from bitter experience. In 2003, he was named the interim coach for the Cornhuskers for the Alamo Bowl when Frank Solich was fired after a 9-3 season. Nebraska beat Michigan State 17-3, but Pelini never shed the interim tag, and Bill Callahan eventually was hired.Swinney was named Clemson's interim coach Oct. 13 when Tommy Bowden was fired, and guided the Tigers to four victories in their last five games. He was hired as the permanent coach following Clemson's victory over South Carolina in the final regular-season game."It's not easy [to take over a program as an interim coach] when there is unrest in the program," Pelini said earlier this week after Nebraska practiced at the University of North Florida. "The hard thing for me was that the future was very unclear. At least Clemson cleared it up and made it easy for [Swinney]. He did a good job, and they rewarded him."Swinney impressedClemson started Monday's activities at a Fellowship of Christian Athletes breakfast for the two teams, and it was the first opportunity Swinney had to see their opponent, the Nebraska Cornhuskers, up close."They are really a big team," he said. "They are big and physical on tape and they are the same way in person. They are coached to play a physical game, and we are going to have match that."Following their 90-minute practice at Jacksonville University, Swinney and 15 players selected by the head coach visited the Wolfson Childrens Hospital. Among the players who went to the hospital were James Davis, C.J. Spiller, Cullen Harper, Aaron Kelly, Rashaad Jackson, Dorell Scott and Michael Hamlin.Classy senior classSwinney was asked if he had thought about what he would say to his senior players before their final game."You talk to them about this being a special moment for them. It's one of those things you just won't ever forget, just like playing your last high school game," the Tigers coach said. "This senior class has been tremendous. It will always be my favorite class. I've got all the respect in the world for them. We'll talk about what's still on the table."When we set our goals out, we've accomplished every single goal except one, and that one is still out there. If we win this game, this will be the winningest senior class since 1991. That's leaving your mark, that's leaving the program better than you found it."Those are some of the things we'll talk about. We've got a lot of seniors that had record-setting careers. They're great kids and they're all going to graduate, too."Preparations winding downAfter today, the two teams have only one more practice scheduled before the Gator Bowl game.The lengthy, full-pad workouts of the first two days tapered down to workouts in helmets and shoulder pads.The practice schedules also changed on the fly, which enabled both teams to avoid the first rain of the week. Nebraska was scheduled to begin at 9:30 a.m., but was delayed until almost noon, and finished at 2:30 p.m., right before the first drops of rain.Clemson got luckier. Swinney changed the practice time from 2:15 p.m. to 11:30 a.m., and the team returned to the Omni Hotel as showers began.Etc.Nebraska and Clemson will be trying to do better than breaking even in bowl games. Nebraska has played in 44 bowl games, and is 22-22. The Huskers have won eight of their last 12 games since an 18-16 loss to Florida State in the 1994 Orange Bowl gave them a seven-bowl losing streak. Clemson has played in 30 bowl games, and is 15-15. However, the Tigers have been going in the other direction. Since being dismantled 41-0 by Donovan McNabb of Syracuse in the 1996 Gator Bowl, Clemson has gone 3-8 in bowls, and lost its last two.Sports writer Jeff Elliott contributed to this report.

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